Book Tour – Animals Have Feelings, Too!

Title: Animals Have Feelings, Too!: Exploring Emotions From A to Z
Author: Karen Lee Stevens
Publisher: All for Animals
Pages: 32
Genre: Children’s Picture Book

Filled with humor and whimsical illustrations, this enchanting and educational A to Z guide takes young readers on a journey through the alphabet with a lovable Labrador retriever named Sandy, who shows kids that animals and people share many of the same feelings. From A is for Affectionate to Z is for Zonked, Animals Have Feelings, Too! helps children to understand and express their feelings and to treat animals with kindness and respect.

For More Information

• Animals Have Feelings, Too!: Exploring Emotions From A to Z is available at Amazon.
• Discuss this book at PUYB Virtual Book Club at Goodreads.

Book Excerpt:

Hi Kids,

My name is Sandy and I’m a yellow Labrador retriever. Most of the time, I’m a happy-go-lucky pup, but once in awhile, I feel lonely or grumpy, too. Just like you, I experience lots of different emotions (that’s a BIG word for feelings).

When I’m happy, I wag my tail and let out a soft ruff-ruff-ruff as if to say Let’s play! When I’m annoyed or frightened, I may grumble and growl, meaning Back off, buddy! Stay away!

My feline friend, Willow, likes to remind me that I’m not perfect, but I love her anyhow. And that’s why I’ve asked her to help me introduce you to my very favorite feeling words. I hope you’ll share them with your human family and, of course, your furry and feathered friends!

Love,

Sandy

About the Author

Karen Lee Stevens is the founder and president of All for Animals, a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating a compassionate world for animals and children through humane education and literacy programs that nurture the human-animal bond.

Karen is also an author and a Certified Humane Educator who, for the past 14 years, has given presentations to thousands of elementary school children and has helped them learn how to treat animals with love and respect.

In February, 2013, Karen launched ARF! (Animals + Reading = Fun!), a unique literacy program that gives children from all walks of life an opportunity to improve their reading skills and inspire them to become life-long readers by reading aloud to specially trained therapy dogs.

Her latest children’s picture book is Animals Have Feelings, Too!: Exploring Emotions From A to Z.

For More Information

• Visit Karen Lee Stevens’ website.
• Connect with Karen on Facebook and Twitter.
• Contact Karen.

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Byline: Karen is the Founder & President of All for Animals, a nonprofit organization in Santa Barbara, California. She is also the author of two books, including Animals Have Feelings, Too!, a children’s picture book that takes young readers on a journey through the alphabet with Sandy, a lovable Labrador retriever, who shows kids that animals and people share many of the same feelings. Learn more about Karen, her books and her organization at allforanimals.org.

Tell us about you…

My resume would tell you that I’m the founder and president of All for Animals, a nonprofit organization in Santa Barbara, California. It would also tell you that I’m a Certified Humane Education Specialist and the author of two books including Animals Have Feelings, Too!, a children’s picture book.

What my resume wouldn’t tell you is that I am someone who is equally comfortable speaking to an audience of 1,000 people as not speaking for days on end at a silent retreat. I’m energized by the music of Pit Bull and soothed by the sounds of Enigma. I’m someone who will usually remember your dog’s name before I remember your name and I have a long-standing tradition of watching the same five romcoms during the holidays (Sleepless in Seattle, You’ve Got Mail, Serendipity, The Holiday, and Return to Me).

What inspires you to get out of bed each day?

Well, my cat, Miss Bella, makes it easy to wake up each morning as she uses one of her paws to pull the covers off my head and then proceeds to kiss my ear until I start giggling… better than any alarm clock! As far as inspiration… the knowledge that I get to run own nonprofit organization and make a difference in the lives of animals and children… that’s what inspires me every single day.

If you could hang out with one famous person for one day, who would it be and why?

And the winner is… Oprah! I actually had the pleasure of meeting Oprah at her 60^th birthday party in Santa Barbara and she was the most gracious (and, might I say, well-dressed) hostess! She came from such humble beginnings and she has made such a beautiful life for herself and for others, especially children. Plus, she has several dogs and any day spent in the company of a canine companion (or three) is a good day!

What’s the story behind your latest book?

How much time do you have?! I’ll attempt to give you the Cliff Notes version: The idea for a children’s book came from my desire to come up with something fun to do for my 50^th birthday. I mulled over several ideas including throwing a party, taking a cruise and indulging in spa day (in that order).

While all these ideas sounded enticing, what actually happened was that I was struck by one of those AHA! moments, where a voice in my head said, “You need to write a children’s book. And, by the way, it should be called Animals Have Feelings, Too!” (Seriously, this really happened!) I’d never had such a surreal experience and, thankfully, I listened to my inner voice, because seven months later, my children’s book was “born.”

(Speaking of giving birth… I have a fun video I shot the day I received the proofs to my book… Check out the link below.)

When did you realize you wanted to be a writer?

Since I was a youngster hanging out in a tree house my dad built in our avocado tree, I’ve enjoyed writing short stories. It wasn’t until my fifth grade teacher, Mr. Frye, read one of my stories aloud in class and told all the kids that I would grow up to be a writer, that I began thinking of myself as a writer.

Tell us about your main character:

Sandy is a “real” 10-year-old Labrador retriever, who belongs to my next door neighbors. Most people are more than a little surprised to learn that Sandy isn’t my own dog because they see us together so often. I always joke that Sandy is my “timeshare doggie,” which always elicits a lot of smiles. We have visited every elementary school and children’s organization in our community at least once and Sandy is always a HUGE hit with the children!

What are you working on next?

I’m working on expanding All for Animals, the nonprofit organization I founded 14 years ago. We have an extraordinary read-to-a-dog program called ARF! (Animals + Reading = Fun!), which inspires children to become better readers.

Do you have any special/extraordinary talents?

Hmmm…  Does lifting my left arm over my head count as a special talent? I mention this because I spent the last 18 months suffering from a condition called Adhesive Capsulitis, which is a fancy name for “frozen shoulder.” With the help of a brilliant physical therapist and a newfound mindful meditation practice, I have been able to eliminate about 95% of the pain and regain my strength and range of motion.

Who are your favorite authors?

I’ve always been a fan of popular authors like John Grisham and Elizabeth Gilbert. Most recently, I’ve been reading several “channeled” metaphysical books such as the Seth Material by Jane Roberts and the Abraham books by Jerry and Esther Hicks.

What do you like to do with your free time?

Lucky for me that my work feels like play so you can most often find me writing, giving presentations at schools and libraries and getting together with my volunteers (both two- and four-legged!) for tea or lunch dates. In my truly “free time,” I enjoy reading (no surprise there!), catching up on reruns of Sex and the City (the main character is a writer, after all!), puttering in my garden or just chilling with my cat.

Tell us about your plans for upcoming books.

I’m in the research phase on a book about mindful meditation for children.

Where can people find you on the web?

Thank you for asking! You can find me on the web at allforanimals.org.

Any final thoughts?

Yes, it’s a phrase by that wise children’s book character, Dr. Seuss, and one I always use to end my presentations. It goes like this:  “The more that you read, the more things you’ll know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”